Now that the world has yet again – almost five years
to the day from 9/11/2001 – been rocked to its core
by the latest terror plot, while Israel is entangled in its war against Hezbollah
terror – it’s high time to revisit the issues
at hand and come up with a game plan.

However it’s not that
simple.

No one likes to be rudely
awakened in middle of a peaceful slumber. But like every war, the longer we
wait the greater the danger. The quicker we wake up, recognize and take on
the enemy the less we will have to suffer, and the faster we will vanquish
those that want to hurt us.

But the key to any battle
is to define its parameters, dissect the anatomy of the enemy and spell out
our goals: Who is the enemy? What is the cause of the hostilities? And then
what possible solutions are available?

Though Islamic terrorists
have declared war on Israel, the United States, Europe and the Western world
– and have acted on their declaration on 9/11 and the subsequent attacks in
London and other cities, not to mention all the thwarted plots – it is quite
clear that the countries of the world have not come to grips with this war.
President Bush and Prime Minister Blair have perhaps the moral clarity necessary
to fight this war, but they have not convinced the world at large that this
is a just war and one that is not going away just because we don’t like it.

Our inability to acknowledge
this challenge is most obviously due to the unusual and unprecedented nature
of this war.

Who exactly is our enemy
today? In a conventional war, the enemy is clear and defined. Your enemy has
a country, a capital, and armed forces in distinct uniforms. In the current
terrorist war the enemy has no face, no place, no land – nothing to lose,
and nothing to fear. We don’t have a target to attack, no cities to bomb which
will serve as a deterrent.

In a conventional war
the enemy also has tangible objectives: Conquest of land, resources, power,
and money. What is the objective of the Muslim fascists when they attack Western
targets? What do they want? In every war, each side states its terms, and
what they want their enemy to surrender. What would satisfy these extremists?
What would it take for them to stop their attacks?

All these questions testify
to the mysterious nature of our current war, and the resulting prevailing
confusion and debates on how to deal with this adversary.

Indeed, this is the first
time in history when people are wondering whether this is even a war or not!
And if yes, what type of war is it?

How in the world can one
fight with any direction, fortitude or confidence if we don’t even know or
acknowledge that we are fighting a war?!...

So, once and of all we
have to decide one way or another: Are we are fighting a war or are we not
fighting a war?

Which is why it so aggravating
to see that despite the unprovoked attacks on Israel by Hezbollah, Israel
seems to be unsure about this war: On one hand Israel
correctly exercised its fundamental obligation to protect its citizens by
responding with an all-out assault on Hezbollah in Lebanon. Israel bombed away at Hezbollah strongholds. Seeing
that air power alone did not destroy the threat, the Israeli army sent in
ground forces. That too did not deter the enemy, so they announced that they
are launching a new ground offensive. Then they decide not to deploy the troops,
waiting for diplomacy to kick in. Back and forth, back and forth.

On one hand, Israel
correctly argues that you can’t negotiate with terrorists that don’t play
by any rules, hide behind civilians and wantonly attack innocent people. On
the other hand, they keep putting things off awaiting a diplomatic solution.
And even if a cease-fire is imposed, what happens next? Next month? Next year?
Has the problem been solved, the enemy vanquished? Ha Hezbollah disappeared?
And what about Iran?

What is going on? If this
is a war – fight all the way. And if not don’t fight at all. The worse thing
to do is to fight with one hand tied behind your back…

Which explains why after
four weeks of fighting people question what has been achieved? Clearly, Israeli
leadership is lacking – to put it mildly – or perhaps they simply are inept…

Amidst all this confusion,
suddenly the chilling news breaks of a greater Islamic terrorist plot to blow
airplanes filled with innocent people out of the skies.

Is this a coincidence?
Or is it perhaps a rude reminder that we are indeed engaged in a very real
and persistent war that must be fought to the very end, or else we will continue
to be haunted.

Imagine: In middle of
World War II the Allies enter into diplomatic negotiations with Hitler and
Nazi Germany. One shudders to think what would have happened if the UN and…
CNN would be intervening in that conflict.

The single most critical
component in war is clarity – a very clear definition of the targeted enemy,
an unwavering commitment to fight the enemy, and above all an absolute crystal-clear
conclusion to the war, in which there is a clear winner and loser.

The Allies demanded unconditional
surrender from the Axis powers – Germany and Japan without any face-saving, diplomatic measures.
Why? Because when you are fighting a sworn enemy, who has demonstrated its
objective to destroy you, there is no room for loopholes, ambiguity and fluctuating
attitudes. Allow the enemy any small opening, and they will never go away.

No one wants or likes
war. No one wants innocent people to die and be displaced due to war. But
when there is a sworn enemy, who challenges the very right of innocent people
to live in peace – and assaults the basic foundations of civilization (no
matter what grievance and excuse the enemy may have) – then war against this
enemy is an act of peace, and act of preserving life.

How many people have to
die or be threatened with death before we realize that the world is at war
with a new enemy: terrorism?

Just look at how the populations
of Great Britain and the
United States – and millions
of others around the globe – were paralyzed today due to the latest terrorist
plot to kill thousands of people flying over the Atlantic.

We can put off the inevitable
confrontation, but there is no doubt that we are dealing with a sworn enemy,
who wants to destroy the Western way of life, Israel, Europe and the United States.

OTHER PERSPECTIVES

Some students of history
may argue that its naïve and even arrogant to draw such stark lines and state
that the Western World is in the all right and the Islamic fundamentalists
is all wrong. They may point out to the many flaws in European and American
society, and who gave the West the right to take the moral high ground and
insist that they have a monopoly on truth and demonize the Muslims.

All wars, the argument
goes, is not about absolute right and wrong. With this approach some could
go as so far and say that even the Nazis were not absolutely evil.

Without beginning a theological
discussion on the definition of good and evil, the universal law that governs
us all is that no one – absolutely no individual, nation, religion or culture
– has a right to compromise the rights or kill other people. What you believe
in your heart is your business, but when you attack others you will be held
accountable.

Others recognize that
the war against Islamic terrorism is war, but not our war. It
is Israel’s
problem not ours.

Inevitably there will
be those that will scapegoat Israel and the Jews for all “our problems” – was
Mel Gibson’s recent drunken outburst also a coincidence? – the claim made
by anti-Semites throughout history. Richard Cohen recently wrote in his Washington
Post column, “Israel
itself is a mistake . . . an honest mistake, a well-intentioned mistake, a
mistake for which no one is culpable [but which] has produced a century of
warfare and terrorism of the sort we are seeing now.” Citing these words,
Kurt Andersen wrote in New York Magazine, that “Sixty years on, there can
be no revising or reversing that mistake—and when the choice is Israel versus unaccommodating Islamist fanatics,
we must be for Israel.
Is there any more inconvenient truth?,” “Israel is a good and miraculous nation
that deserves the support of civilized people, but the great unfortunate fact
about its creation—being carved by the U.N. out of Arab land in 1947—cannot
be ignored or wished away. We have no choice but to support Israel.”

Then there are those that
recognize that this is a war against us all. And they do not forget the lesson
of the miners’ canary: Throughout history Israel and Jews always stood
at the front line; fascists and killers of all sorts attacked the Jews first
and then terrorize the rest of the world.

Is it a coincidence that
the Middle East quagmire keeps spilling over to the rest
of the world?

An attack on one innocent
person is an attack against all innocent people. Once the line is crossed
in compromising the basic dignity of life in one corner of Earth it is only
a matter of time when it will come to haunt the entire globe. An unstemmed
attack against innocent people in Israel foretells what will inevitably – and sadly
– happen around the world.

Unfortunately this isn’t
just a theory, but the call of Islamic jihad against the “infidels of the
West,” agents of the Zionist/Crusader/American plot. They specifically state
time and again that their war is not with Israel alone but with the entire secular West.
Tragically these aren’t mere words. The attacks of September 11 in the USA,
and again in Spain, London
and other cities around the world – and the most recent foiled plot – only
demonstrate what the world is up against.

So, how do we proceed?
What is the true nature of this war, and what is the solution?

Some, perhaps most, choose
denial. Ignore the situation and go on with our lives. Especially when the
situation becomes complex, most people simply do not want to look at the issues
head on. “Let us rest in peace,” is the popular cry of denial.

Others argue that we need
to join forces with other countries and not behave unilaterally, and work
at solutions together. But what do you do when countries have their own interests
in mind – for instance, economic interests as in oil and the Middle
East – that taint their positions regarding Middle Eastern regimes?

And, finally, others feel
that we have no choice but need to go to declare war against terrorism, against
all extremists who have declared jihad against Israel and the Western World.
Following 9/11, America,
under President Bush, has embraced this approach.

The problem with this
strategy is, as Thomas Friedman points out, even if the President has moral
clarity, he does not have moral authority in the world’s eyes. Mr. Friedman
argues that other nations world always admired the United States (albeit with
envy) for its naiveté and eternal optimism. America offered the world
a buoyant message of hope and confidence in a better future. Today the nations
feel that America
is promoting a dark message of despair, defensiveness and fear.

Whether Friedman is correct
or not, the current war on terrorism definitely behooves America to not just
advocate the vices of the enemy, but the virtues of freedom.

And this brings us back to the nature of today’s war, unlike any war
ever fought. Today’s war is fundamentally an ideological
one. Perhaps for the first time in history this war is driven
by purely religious and faith based forces. Millions of
Muslim children are indoctrinated from young age with a
radical vision of a secular, Western world of infidels that
must be destroyed and replaced with Islam. Martyrdom is
deified. Children are brainwashed that the greatest thing
they can do is give their lives for Islam against the infidels.
(See Back
to Reality)

All you have to do is
listen to some ex-terrorists, who describe in frightening detail how they
were programmed from early age to kill Jews and Westerners, and thereby be
rewarded with heaven. When asked what they suggest should be done with Muslim
terrorists, they unequivocally reply: Do not negotiate. Go all the way and
destroy them all. They will never understand words, logic and dialogue.

As the most powerful country
in the world the United States must lead this war with a powerful
moral vision. It is not just a defensive war against terrorist attacks; it
is an offensive battle for the ambitious vision of a world that will live
in peace, while respecting the diversity of nations, cultures and faiths.
We are fighting a war for a vision – first delivered at Sinai – which guided
the Founding Father: That all people are created equal, with inalienable rights
granted by virtue that we are all G-d’s children, created in the Divine Image.
Everyone has the right to practice and believe in their unique way. The enemy
is anyone who breaches the universal and absolute law of hurting or killing
another person; of denying and robbing any person of their fundamental, G-d
given rights.

Beyond resources, strategy
and tactics every triumphant battle requires, above all, cause and confidence.
Nothing is more vital for success. You can have the strongest army, the most
advanced technology, state of the art weaponry, but if you don’t believe that
you are fighting for a just cause you will not have the fortitude to fight
and see it through. Viet Nam is a case in point. The American army
lost (or never had) its morale, never understood the purpose of the war and
therefore never fought with resolve.

In sum: To effectively
protect the future of our and our children’s lives and create a better world
several things are necessary:

Not go into denial and gravitate
to our comfort zones.

Define the enemy.

Believe in the justness of our
cause.

Not negotiate with sworn enemies.

Use all available tools – dialogue,
pressure, economic influence and if necessary, war – to vanquish the enemy.

If you must fight, do so with
resolve and determination.

Demand strong leadership with
moral vision and authority.

Focus on a positive vision for
the future of the world.

With the new type of war
upon us – with no defined boundaries and targets – the time has come to adjust
our sensors: Not only our airport metal detectors to detect insidious, innocuous
liquids, but also our consciousness to detect the devious enemy lurking within
our society.

Once you know that you are fighting a sworn enemy, and
at the same time you carry a deep sense of a positive vision
of life, you have the necessary strength to do what it takes
to protect the innocent and build a better world.

* * *

Question of the week: Is it an accident
that the foiled terror plot in Great Britain coincided with Hezbollah’s
war of terror against Israel?

Nice essay, but you put an awful lot of faith in our dimwitted president.

Note that when the threat of militant Islam raised its ugly head, he chose to pursue his own ideology, wasting our military and diplomatic resources invading Iraq. Also note that he's had three CIA directors on his watch and doled out key security posts as patronage to his cronies.

In fact we are the victim of two ideologies. You discussed the first one.

The other one is the Bush-Rove-Cheney agenda, which equates our national security with their political security.

Anonymous, 08/22/2006

An ironic detail, with love and respect:

From a recent CBC documentary/dramatization:

At the Potsdam Conference, the Allied forces decided to change
unconditional surrender to unconditional surrender of military forces,
to leave the Japanese monarchy in tact. Prime Minister Suzuki
interpreted this as a sign of weakness. He thought the Allies must
need to quit soon so he advocated and Japan responded "no surrender."

From that moment Hiroshima was a fait accompli.

Tina, 08/22/2006California

Re Hezbollah's intentions towards Israel and the west, the fact that they name their missiles "Khaybar" should give us a clue.

Phyllis Chesler wrote in an article on The Psychological Roots of Islamic Rage:

"Individual Jewish women, though, may present a particularly tempting target to mentally ill and violent Muslims in a jihadic era. The “Jewess” is the most denigrated female in Islamic ideology. Zaynab bint Al-Harith, the Khaybar “Jewess,” is the woman who was falsely accused of having poisoned the prophet Muhammed after having witnessed the beheading of her entire male community in the Battle of Khaybar. Not coincidentally, Hizbullah currently calls its missiles “Khaybar.” We have also been told that a new Iranian television station is known as “Khaybar.” The Khaybar, the Jewish woman was herself beheaded.

Phyllis Chesler talks of Muslims as having to reject their mothers. They also have to reject their source which is Abraham and Judaism.

The undermining by Jews is unbelievable as in the upcoming interview by Michael Wallace of Ahmadinejhad on 60 Minutes this Sunday. He thinks Ahmadinejhad is a swell guy.

A worried Israeli, 08/22/2006

The accident is that the entire world won't fight Islamic terror instead of screwing Israel with their UN edicts. It's all the same game to take over the world.

There is absolutely no point to this question.

Susan Roseman, 08/22/2006

This is a spiritual war the world is facing. At its root is the desire to
grab power and rule the world. It is good vs evil. It is hate vs love. It is jealousy vs complaisancy. Ideological freedom vs slavery of mind and spirit. Islam vs all other religions. Etc. And as you know, was foretold in the Bible.

It is not going to go away. It is far more serious and deadly than most realize. Up to now, even most of the Israelis have been in denial regarding this. Even though it has been right in front of their noses. Most Americans still are, sometimes I think this is even more true for our own, Jewish people. Because who really wants to see it as the terrible, looming threat it is?

G-d is trying to get our attention. And we had better begin seeing it for what it is.